Savannah Resources to start Mahab 4 and Maqail South mine development in Oman

Created: Tuesday, 15 May 2018 06:41

Oman aims to bringing new mines onstream in the country. (Image source: U. Leone/Pixabay)Savannah Resources plc, the AIM-quoted resource development company, has announced the issuance of letters of no objection from all eight ministries for both the Mahab 4 and Maqail South mining licence applications in Oman

Savannah is a 65 per cent shareholder in the Omani company Al Fairuz Mining LLC, the holder of the Block 5 exploration licence which includes these two high-grade copper deposits.

Commenting on the mine developments in Oman, David Archer, CEO of Savannah Resources, said, “In light of the very favourable copper price environment and strong interest from potential off-takers for high-quality copper concentrate, we are excited to be moving closer to being the first new copper mine development in Oman for a number of years and look forward to finalising the licensing process with PAM.”

Alongside the licensing progress, the company has been participating in the government-sponsored Tanfeedh Labs sessions, which assembled all industry stakeholders in Oman and provided an industry sounding board for the proposed new mining law in Oman.

According to Archer, Oman’s new mining law is moving towards adoption and focusing on making Oman’s mining environment more attractive to investors and supporting the development of the mining industry in the region.

Approvals or no objection letters have been obtained from eight of the required ministries for the Maqail South and Mahab 4 applications. However, Savannah is seeking to conclude the licensing process with the Public Authority of Mining (PAM) for the issuance of the two mining licences.